Adult Picture Book
Date Published: July 22, 2024
This satirical tale disguised as a children's book follows an aspiring drag
queen with dreams of dazzling stages and glittered wigs eager to shine in a
world determined to hold him back.
Convinced that the tough buckaroos in the neighboring town of Ruff Ridge,
known for their rugged cowboy way of life and home to the clothing brand
Ruff Ryder, will hinder his glamorous ambitions, he devises an ingenious
plan to win their acceptance. With courage, creativity, and a pair of chaps,
he embarks on a journey to turn his dreams into reality.
Inspired by real events, this clever, funny, and heartwarming tale explores
identity, ambition, and community. The story celebrates individuality,
courage, and the transformative power of being true to oneself, all while
providing a thought-provoking reflection on the politics of our times.
INTERVIEW
Introduce yourself and tell me about what you do.
Hello, my name is Roger Rittenhouse (no relation to the MAGA Murderer)
I’m a comedy writer originally from Denver, Colorado, and living in southern California for the past 30 years. I began my comedy career doing stand-up comedy in the ’80s and ’90s eventually appearing on The Arsenio Hall Show, The Denis Miller Show, and Jimmy Kimmel Live before becoming a writer. I’ve written for Bill Maher, Norm MacDonald, Ron White, DL Hughley, and Larry the Cable Guy. The latter two I still work with. My notable writing credits include writing on Bill Maher’s Politically Incorrect and several Comedy Central Roasts.
Tell me more about your journey as an author, including the writing processes.
After moving to Los Angeles, my writing options were mostly sitcoms, but I can’t stand sitcoms: the forced laughter, and the fake sets. My background was in joke writing but in the 90s jokes were out. It was the alternative comedy scene and I didn’t fit in. So, I got a job at Warner Brothers writing promos for the WB channel. Promos were just short jokes
with a plug. I wasn’t sure what path to take, but at this time Larry the Cable Guy, Dan Whitney, a friend and fellow comic was becoming huge selling out arenas. His whole act was one-liners and he needed a writer, so he put me on salary. His character was fun and easy to write for but different than my style. My humor is dark. I had one-liners like, “I met a nice girl last week on the road. But I was staying at a Budget 8 Motel. You don’t take a girl back there unless you’re going to kill her.” “I told the front desk I saw a rat. They brought me an extra pillow.” Long story short, I’ve been working with him ever since.
In 1996, It was the O.J. Simpson murder and the obviousness of his guilt that I couldn’t help but find so funny. It was a horrible tragedy, but the crime was so cartoonish. Bloody prints at both of their homes, racing to the border, an eyewitness in his guest house heard a “THUMP!”--it was Dr. Suess. That was when I imagined doing Suessian picture books on more irreverent subjects and pointed more towards actual events or people. But I couldn’t draw and knew there was no way it could go anywhere. Two people were dead. But I wrote and illustrated it anyway. To Think That It Happened On Snobbery Street follows a movie star, J.J. McQueen who while golfing misses a two-foo putt for Birdie when his girlfriend Bunny calls his cellphone. He angrily stomps through the watering hole leaving a trail of muddy footprints to her house where she’s found bonked on the head. The jury finds the putter guilty. It’s sitting in a drawer.
I was obsessed with wanting to do this and continued to draw. I had a cartoon published in Women’s Day Magazine in 2000, but single-panel cartoons are much harder to publish consistently to make a living. So I continued writing jokes; 23 years passed before my obsession returned.
The advent of digital drawing tablets,(anyone can draw with a digital drawing tablet.) and Tennesee banning drag performances is what sprung Big Tex.
About my art: I don’t have an art style. I grew up with Mad Magazine and Looney Tunes and just try to copy that. For me, the illustrations are just a way to communicate the story.
Tell me about your Book
Big Tex is a picture book in rhyme intended for adults but accessible to children. Inspired by the real events of drag performance being banned in several red states, It follows an aspiring drag queen who is convinced that the tough buckaroos in the neighboring town of Ruff Ridge will hinder his glamorous dreams, so he devises a plan to thwart their intentions.
I found his news story to be very Suessian. Like the Grinch hating the Who’s, the drag queen hates the buckaroos.
And with drag queens reading to children, Big Tex is essentially their story, the adversity they deal with, the homophobic attitudes they’re up against, trying to find acceptance.
About the Author
Roger Rittenhouse is a former stand-up comedian originally from Denver,
Colorado who began his career in the 80s, appearing on The Arsenio Hall
Show, The Dennis Miller Show, and Jimmy Kimmel Live. Notable writing credits
include Bill Maher's Politically Incorrect and the Comedy Central Roasts. An
armchair cartoonist turned author and illustrator, (after finding a digital
drawing tablet on Craigslist) Roger brings his comedic antics to picture
books intended for big boys and girls.
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